The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may or may not constitute prior art.
A typical transmission in a motor vehicle runs at peak efficiency when at an elevated temperature, anywhere from 25 to 90 degrees Celsius. However, when a motor vehicle is first started and has not been warmed up, it will take time for the transmission to warm up and reach an ideal operating temperature, perhaps taking as long as 25 minutes of continuous operation. During the warm up, the transmission suffers from inefficiencies such as spin loss.
Various devices have been employed to attempt to reduce the warm up time by increasing the temperature of the transmission. For example, heat exchangers, bypass valves, and oil pan heaters have been employed to provide heat to the transmission. However, these devices are limited by when and by how much heat can be extracted from the engine. Additionally, these devices require additional transmission and vehicle content. Accordingly, there is room in the art for a system and method of heating a transmission without adding additional components.